The World In Brief

Staff Reports

Anglican Archbishop Of Wales Backs Same-Sex Marriage In UK

Dr Barry Morgan  via Facebook

LLANDDUDNO, WALES, UK -- The Archbishop of Wales, Dr Barry Morgan, lent his support to same-sex marriage during an impassioned plea for Anglicans to be more tolerant towards homosexuals during a meeting of the church’s governing body Tuesday. The archbishop said, “All life-long committed relationships deserved the welcome, pastoral care and support of the Church," adding that Christians "need to show how the Gospel of Jesus is good news for gay people". He said the church had to ask itself whether it would "protect and support pastorally, faithful, stable, lifelong relationships of whatever kind in order to encourage human values such as love and fidelity and recognise the need in Christian people for some public religious support for these".

Unlike the Roman Catholic Church, which follows theological doctrine dictated by the Vatican, the Church of England is filled with Bishops who hold a variety of views on controversial topics such as homosexuality and the consecration of women bishops.

The majority of the archbishop's address dealt with the ongoing debate over the competing theological arguments surrounding same-sex marriage, even though the current government proposals only effect civil marriages and will not force religious organisations to conduct weddings for same sex couples.

However he called on his church to support the government’s desire to allow gay men and women to marry in a civil environment. "If the legislation to allow civil marriage is passed, I cannot see how we as a church, will be able to ignore the legality of the status of such partnerships and we ought not to want to do so,” he said.

Morgan also said he was concerned about the welfare of gay people whom he feared could feel uncomfortable and unwelcome in churches over the coming months as prime minister David Cameron's backed proposals for same-sex marriage are debated nationally."

Olympic Diving Champion Comfortable As An Icon For LGBTQ People

Matthew Mitcham

SYDNEY, NSW, AUSTRALIA -- Openly gay Olympic gold medalist diving champion Matthew Mitcham, 24, in an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald Wednesday says he's comfortable being seen as an icon for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.

In the interview, Mitcham said that he doesn't mind the attention paid to his personal life.

"I certainly don't see it as a burden," he said after training in Sydney. "I never did, especially with how much attention the LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered] cause has been getting lately with marriage equality … and with how few openly gay sports stars there are around at the moment. I don't mind attention being put on it."

Mitcham added, "Ideally I would like one day for sexuality to be as unimportant and uninteresting as hair colour, or eye colour or even just gender in general. One day it will get to that. But until it is easy for sports people to come out without fear of persecution or fear of lost sponsorship income and stuff like that, or fear of being comfortable in the team environment, I don't mind attention being brought to my sexuality in the hope that it might make other people feel more comfortable … in being comfortable enough about who they are in their sporting environment."

After discussing that topic, Mitcham indicated that his main purpose in going to the summer Olympic games in London will not be to champion a cause or belief, but to win a gold medal in an event in which he knows he will face some stiff competition.

Mitcham, who has been plagued by injuries including competing through the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India with stress fractures in his spine, and then suffering a grade two to three tear to his rectus abdominis that sidelined him until last December, is preparing to defend his title in London this summer. Mitcham appears to be back in top form, attracting perfect 10s from all seven judges on one of his dives to post a plus-550 score at the Australian trials in Adelaide earlier this month.

Iranian Cleric Describes Politicians Who Pass Laws Protecting LGBT People As Being "Worse Than Pigs And Dogs"

Ayatollah Abdollah Javadi-Amoli

QOM, IRAN -- Ayatollah Abdollah Javadi-Amoli, a conservative Iranian politician and one of the prominent Islamic scholars of the seminary of traditional Islamic learning who has authority to deliver decisions based on Shariah law, recently proclaimed in reference to gay persons having sex, “Even animals … dogs and pigs don’t engage in this disgusting act, but yet they [western politicians] pass laws in favour of them in their parliaments. If a society commits a new sin, it will face a new punishment. Problems like Aids did not exist before.”

Iran’s parliament has approved amendments of the punishments for male sodomy whereby the man sodomised will be put to death, but the man who performs the act, providing it is consensual and he is not married, is liable only to flogging.